Top Surgeons to Convene for SAGES 2015 Annual Meeting, April 15th – 18th

Once a year the world’s top surgeons convene to advance the future of minimally invasive surgery at the annual meeting of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES). According to Dr. L. Michael Brunt, SAGES President, “This year’s meeting, ‘Promoting a Universal Culture of Innovation, Safety and Improved Outcomes in GI Surgery,’ will continue a long-standing tradition of strong didactic sessions by experts, combined with exploration of innovative technology and medical breakthroughs in the fields of general, upper GI, colorectal, endoscopic, robotic and minimally invasive surgery (MIS).” The meeting will be held at the Gaylord Opryland Convention Center in Nashville, TN, April 15th though April 18th.Chaired by Drs. Aurora Pryor and Michael D. Holzman, the meeting will be jointly held with the International Pediatric Endosurgery Group (IPEG) and will highlight approaches to GI disease in a pediatric and adolescent population. It will also feature the SAGES Military Surgical Symposium. The conference is expected to draw more than 2,000 surgeons and allied health professionals and will include hands-on courses and scientific sessions on various advances in MIS and tours of the learning center with new simulators and simulations scenarios.The exhibit hall will feature the latest equipment and instruments in the field, many of which are debuted at the meeting. Additionally, as part of SAGES mission to promote global collaboration and exchange of knowledge, multiple sessions will be webcast to over 21 countries worldwide to over 2,000 participants in partnership with other leading surgical organizations. A Mini Medical School for high school students, featuring robotic helicopters and video games that help decrease errors, will allow students to show that they have the “right stuff” to join the future ranks of laparoscopic surgeons.In light of an outbreak of drug-resistant superbugs at UCLA linked to ERCP duodenoscopes, SAGES has added a new panel titled “FDA Advisory on Duodenoscopes” to be chaired by President-Elect Dr. Brian Dunkin and SAGES Member Dr. Michael Kochman. “This panel will cover issues surrounding high-level disinfection of duodenoscopes, how surgeons can recognize potential endoscope infection transmission issues and steps that can be taken to prevent future transmission of multi-drug resistant organisms by a reprocessed instrument,” said Dr. Dunkin.Additional conference highlights will include:Wednesday, April 15th: